The family tree challenge

I find myself ruminating on a lot of discussion about acknowledging our teachers lately. It could be the Jamilia workshop I took a few weeks back - just a taste of it with Christy - so many familiar things to ATS - the evolution is RIGHT THERE. Workshops with Jill and Rachel who have each independently talked about their own progression as dancers and their family trees - acknowledging their influences and teachers, where they've come from and where their teachers have come from.

the coolest thing about dance? it is an evolution. you go to various workshops and you see things - familiar things - maybe taught as a variation or with different terminology but it comes from somewhere - it has evolved down from dancer to dancer - surely you've noticed.

an ever changing progression of moves, stylization, terminology, costuming. for me and tribal - from Jamila's studies of Arabic dancers to her own development & teachings to Suhalia to Masha, Carolena & Kajira, Mardi - to the dancers I've directly trained with from Mira to Jill to Ange to Colette to Faith and Sam, Candace and Rachel - the list could go on and on.... we do ourselves and the dance form a huge disservice not to acknowledge our family tree and the tree of the dance we study. Have you traced out _your_ family tree of dance? could you or do you stop somewhere along the way without knowing where that teacher comes from and her or his background and teaching?

yes - we can specalize.  we can be pure traditional ATS or a rocker punk goth fusion or something inbetween with more oriental and arabic influences....  you can shimmy it in whatever style you wish.  but make it yours and know where style(s) come from.  and acknowledge them - don't say all those moves are yours alone.  you bet - some might be and that is SO COOL! but many will have evolved or have been learned from somewhere.  who?  who did they learn from?  do you know?

it is a challenge I give you and myself for the fall - to trace your dance family tree - to know where you come from so you can be part of where we're going in an enlightened, acknowledging and thankful way.  acknowledge your teachers.  and you may not have to name them all, but acknowledge and be grateful for their teachers and their teachers before them.  we come from an incredibly richly woven tapestry in North American bellydance.  It's so good to see it finally being publicly talked about.

knowing I could keep going on this topic for a very long time, I will dream that when I wake up I will have tickets to see the Jamila show later this month.... they'll be propped up next to the coffee pot - okay?

I leave you with the words I have written down to always MC for Mira Betz... she is ...  a dancer.

period.

 

 

Love ...

(side note:  This rant comes from a thought I wrote on fb today so scared am I that a dear dear friend is losing himself into a dangerous place.  It is an expansion on that thought... because frankly, no one should live like that.  No one.  NO. ONE. deserves that.)

"Love does not lay traps to catch others in... It does not lie, look for deceit or mistrust. Love is complete belief in the worth of another person accepting that they are human, not perfect but entirely worth being with"

Love does not lay traps to catch others in... It does not lie, look for deceit or mistrust.  It is the ability to push past mistakes aside, to move on with an open and full heart.  To have complete and utter respect for not only the other person but yourself.  Not to lose who you are in the relationship.  It is the ability to communicate, honestly and openly without questioning all the time.  The ability to only deal with present issues without dragging the past into it.  So hard to do.  But so important to work at.

It is the ability to be still and quiet with in utter and complete comfort.  To laugh with and cry with.  To have shared goals and support individual ones.  To nurture and grow individually and together, not necessarily at the same time and being okay with that.  To always say thank you for the love and trust placed in you.

Granted, every relationship is different and unique to itself.  But to me, love is complete belief in the worth of another person accepting that they are human, not perfect at all but entirely worth being with, completely, entirely, fully and utterly.

if this is not your love....  you have some work to do.   and I'll call you on it.

Reciprocity

Has someone ever trusted you with their heart? their heart and soul - every ounce of their love and being?

If so - you are truly blessed.  When was the last time you told them, even better, showed them, that you knew what an incredible blessing it was to have them in your life.  I hope today.  And I hope they returned the favour. I have friends who live this way and I adore the way they treat each other, even after decades of marriage, rush to meet each other at the door, gaze adoringly at their partner when engaged in conversation.  And I wonder what it is that makes their relationship tick along so beautifully, despite whatever challenges they face now and in the past.

To have someone give you their heart - to live their life and their days at work, or school, be a mother, father, academic, poet, all the things they are, is amazing.  To be all those things they are and to have given you their heart - their desire to share the beautiful and the ugly of their days, to hold at night, to dream and share and plan, to grow as themselves but walk down the same road as you...  to have given their heart to you is an honour.  Never take it for granted.  Make time everyday just for the two of your hearts to connect, say hello, hold hands, hold each other.  If you say you're going to call in an hour, call.  If you can't, at least text and make a firm time that you can with love and wishes.  Never be so wrapped up in your own world that you forget to ask about theirs.  Offer tea and foot rubs, make dinner or do the dishes, draw warm baths or a walk in the garden.

If someone has trusted you with their heart - realize what a gift you have been given.  Don't neglect it.  Never forget how privileged you are.  If you nurture and appreciate and love, the reciprocal love will wrap you up in such amazing joy and light.  Nothing will be impossible to overcome and your life... well, I bet your life will be happier and longer..